Lyndon Institute

Lyndon Institute

"Per Aspera Ad Astra"
Location
Lyndon, VT
U.S.
Information
Type Private, boarding
Religious affiliation(s) non-sectarian
Established 1867
Headmaster Daren Houck
Faculty 51[1]
Enrollment 651[1]
Student to teacher ratio 13 to 1
Color(s) Maroon and white
Athletics 19 Interscholastic Sports
Athletics conference Division II
Mascot Vikings
Website www.lyndoninstitute.org

Lyndon Institute is a coeducational, independent, boarding preparatory school located in the village of Lyndon Center, in the town of Lyndon, Vermont. It provides education for grades 9 through 12 for both commuting local students and students resident on campus.

Tuition for commuting students was $14,004 in 2010-11. Tuition for full-time boarding students was $38,990.[2]

Student body

The school has more than 85 boarding students including some from Taiwan, China, Japan, Israel, Germany, Sweden, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Brazil and South Korea. Students from Vermont communities that are not within easy commuting distance take advantage of a five-day boarding program.

The Institute is also the high school of choice for nearby small towns that pay tuition for their students to attend rather than fund a public high school. The Town of Lyndon selects this school for their children. In turn, the Institute accepts their students promoted from their eighth grade without further examination.

There is an annual fall "fun day" and winter carnival.[3]

Academics

Its 625 students take a program of studies that includes a college preparatory curriculum as well as a program of athletic activities, visual and performing arts classes and performances, and technical education courses. Every student takes at least one arts course. A third of the students take two or more classes.[3]

The school is accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges[4] and is approved by the Vermont State Department of Education. It is a member of the Independent School Association of Northern New England and the Vermont Independent Schools Association.

Starting in the 2014-2015 school year, Lyndon Institute replaced the traditional mid-term and final exams with January Term, where students take part in one of a variety of in-depth courses. The school defines the objective of the January Term as:

"…to allow every student to create an artifact, or final product, which reflects the acquisition of skill and knowledge in the field of study. These artifacts will be measured against predefined course requirements and objectives and could include: performances, videos, formal presentations, creation of web page resources, certification in a field, a business plan, a journal, a publication, or a product of some type."[5]

Campus

The school has three campuses: Vail, Harris, and Darling. Technical programs are located on the Vail Campus, named after a founder, Theodore Vail.

The Harris Campus is where the dorms, Language classrooms, Visual Arts, and Business classrooms are located. It is also where the softball diamond and Sanborn Hall athletics are based.

The Darling Campus is where the Main Building is located, where all other classes are held. The auditorium, Student Services, and the Administrative offices are located there. The lower campus includes dormitories, houses that serve as dormitories, and classrooms. This campus also contains the football practice field, field hockey and the girls' and boys' soccer fields. Below the main building is the football field. Circling it is the asphalt track built in 2000. The campus is named after Elmer Darling, a major contributor. In 2010 a new baseball field was built, McDonald Field, above the Darling Campus with help from the technical education teachers through funding from the McDonald family, replacing the use of the Lyndon State College Field.

There are six residence halls: three cottage-style dorms for girls and three larger dorms for boys. Live-in house parents oversee the activities of each. Most dorm students have single rooms.[3]

The yearbook has book arts and printmaking as highlights of the Art program. There is a dance and music program.

History

The school began in 1867 as the Lyndon Literary and Biblical Institution. Its first academic term was in 1870. The campus served as home to the Lyndon Commercial College in 1886, and the Vermont School of Agriculture, founded in 1910 by Theodore Vail, the first president of New England Telephone Company and the American Telephone and Telegraph Company (AT&T).[6]

Vail served on the board of trustees for twenty years. As chairman, he saved the institution from financial ruin in 1912.[7]

Elmer Darling served as president of the Lyndon Institute's Board of Trustees. When the Institute's main building was completely destroyed by fire in 1922, Darling led a successful campaign to raise funds to replace the building. He left a substantial amount of money to expand the school's endowment at his death in 1931.[7]

In 1923, the name was officially changed to Lyndon Institute.

Between 1923 and 1951 the Institute provided both secondary and post-secondary education for area students.

In 1951 the post-secondary program moved and became Lyndon State College.

In 2003 Lyndon Institute re-established its boarding program.

Athletics

Teams compete in Vermont's Division II and in the Mountain League, locally.

Interscholastic sports include:

Fall Sports: Cheerleading, Cross Country Running, Field Hockey, Lacrosse, Football, Soccer, Mountain Biking.

Winter Sports: Alpine Skiing, Nordic Skiing, Hockey, Basketball, Cheerleading, Bowling, Snowboarding

Spring Sports: Track and Field, Baseball, Softball, Ultimate Frisbee, Golf, Racquet Sports (Tennis, Badminton, and Pickle ball)

In addition to its recreation and physical education program, the school has an intramural volleyball program.

Recognition

The girls' softball team had an unbroken streak of 80 victories from 2005 until 2009. The 2004 season concluded with the team's only loss of that year.[8][9]

St. Johnsbury / Lyndon Institute football game

Since the fall of 1894, Lyndon Institute and St. Johnsbury Academy have played football against each other, making it one of the oldest football rivalries in the nation. There have been 110 annual contests between the schools. Games were suspended in 1897, 1898, from 1900 to 1904, from 1906 to 1907, 1909, 1911, from 1914 to 1918, 1922, and 1927. There have been six ties. Lyndon Institute has 44 wins to St. Johnsbury Academy's 60.[11]

Notable alumni

Footnotes

  1. 1 2 Private School Review.com
  2. ↑
  3. 1 2 3 Lyndon Institute 2009 brochure
  4. ↑ New England Association of Schools and Colleges retrieved June 22, 2008
  5. ↑ http://www.lyndoninstitute.org/Page/Academics/January-Term
  6. ↑ http://www.lyndoninstitute.org/our-history.asp retrieved July 24, 2007
  7. 1 2 Lyndon, Vermont - Local celebrities retrieved April 26, 2008
  8. ↑ Vikings streak hits 70. Burlington Free Press. May 30, 2008.
  9. 1 2 Ted Ryan (June 13, 2009). Otters' title ends another Lyndon streak. Burlington Free Press.
  10. ↑ Lyndon Institute website retrieved April 25, 2008 Archived March 25, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.
  11. ↑ "Senate concurrent resolution commemorating the 100th football game between Lyndon Institute and St. Johnsbury Academy". Vermont General Assembly. 2004. Retrieved 2008-01-04.

External links and references

Coordinates: 44°32′18″N 72°00′56″W / 44.5382342°N 72.0156225°W / 44.5382342; -72.0156225

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